For you shall go out in joy and be led forth in peace; the mountains and the hills before you shall break forth into singing, and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands. Isaiah 55:12

Life is busy. We begin the day by scampering to our morning obligations – work, driving the kids to school, civic activities – and transition the hectic pace to each next task throughout the day. Often there is little respite to reflect on what brings joy to life. The least pleasant part of my day is often the interstate commute to and from work. I dread it at both ends of my day. Traffic is unpredictable and being joined with everyone else struggling to reach their destination magnifies the frustration associated with the experience.

Recently, I accessed the interstate shortly after dawn and the rising sun shown just so, about half-way up, on the amber and golden leaves of the hardwood trees lining the hillside adjacent to the interstate. The view was picturesque and postcard worthy. In short, a glorious and joyful reminder of the Creator’s presence set smack in the middle of the hectic and most dreaded part of my day. Although not at the same level of brilliance – the sun is not always just right and the leaves only change colors once a year – a similar view is available to me each morning. As we travel through

Advent, a season that is quite hectic for most and stressful for many, my hope is that we all take time to appreciate the beauty of God’s Grace and the reason for the season – God gave us His Son – within the “noise” of this busy time. If so, we can enjoy Isaiah’s prophecy in allowing God to send us forth in joy and peace.

Thought for the Day

Take time each day during Advent (and throughout the year) to appreciate the beauty of God’s gifts to His children, including the promises of peace and joy.

Prayer
Thank you for the simple gifts and examples of Your love and grace granted to us each day. Help me to step back each day during this special season and recognize the beauty of these gifts and help me to serve as an example of Your joy and peace into the world.

Mike Thompson, New Horizons Class

Today in the town of David, a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord. – Luke 2:11

Here it comes again – Wonderful Christmas. Reach out and grab a handful as it settles down around you.

We SEE the beautiful trees; holly; toy store windows –

We HEAR the carols; chimes; gay voices –

We TASTE the cookies; turkey; cranberries; plum pudding –

We SMELL the pine boughs; spices; bayberry candles –

And then there is the FEELING.

Let’s take time to reflect on the miracle that happened those 2,000 years ago and remember the “Gift” that God blessed us with – His Love. Yes, that is what Christmas is – God’s love for you and me.

As I wish you a “Merry Christmas” – take for yourself a generous portion of that love and share it with as many as you can.

Elizabeth Davis, Fisherman Class

When the Ordinary is Extraordinary
Read Matthew 25:31-45

 Then they told what had happened on the road, and how he had been made known to them in the breaking of the bread. – Luke 24:35
Advent is a time of staging. We try to prepare the most beautiful tree, the exceptionally decorated home, the most wonderful presents, the perfect baked goodies, the feast of gastronomical delights, and the list goes on and on… as does the stress of creating the “Perfect Christmas”—that fictional place we think we can best experience the birth of our newborn King. We try so very hard to create the flawless Christmas season, making heart-warming memories for ourselves and our loved ones by staging a place for Christ to come into our lives.

I have a dear friend, a woman in her 80’s, who is experiencing memory issues so very common for folks in their mature years. When I called her the other week, she was somewhat winded from raking leaves in her yard, but was very excited because she had found a little baby under the leaves, somewhat buried in the dirt. After I determined that this was not a REAL baby, she began explaining to me how the baby was a “cute little baby, a pretty little baby, and it has its own little bed with it too!” After countless questions, I asked if this was a baby Jesus in the manger. She replied, “Well, maybe so…. You’ll have to look at it when you come out here next time.” Several days later, I saw the baby she found, which was in fact, the baby Jesus from a long ago forgotten Nativity Scene. She was delighted with it and put it in a place of honor in her home where she discovers it daily and rejoices with each discovery.

I thought about this incident in relation to the staging that we do for Advent. Baby Jesus came to my friend while she was performing an ordinary task in her life – raking leaves. There was no fanfare, or staging, yet she takes great delight in the visitor in her home. It seems to me that it is in the ordinary, mundane aspects of life that Christ can be found. He came to the world as a peasant, an ordinary person of first century Palestine. People didn’t find Him on a throne in Jerusalem, where they were looking for Him, but rather, in the ordinary places of everyday life. Those walking with Him to Emmaus didn’t recognize Him until He broke bread with them – a symbolic act for Christians today, but ordinary at that time. And, like my friend, many of them didn’t realize His true identity. Nonetheless, He was God clothed in humanity – the Word made flesh.

I am not saying that it’s foolish to prepare for Christmas with lovely decorations, special foods, and other trappings of the season. But I AM suggesting that perhaps, we should look for Christ where we don’t expect to find Him — in the ordinary, routine tasks of our daily lives: in raking the leaves… shopping for groceries… doing the laundry… as well as in the face of an elderly person… the cry of the hungry… the needs of the lonely. And when He is revealed, we should rejoice and honor our King.

Prayer: Lord, help us to prepare our hearts to receive You this Advent season. Let us not become absorbed with the tangible trappings of the season, but experience Your Coming in the ordinary activities of our daily lives. Amen.

Prayer Focus: Finding Christ in those around us and serving them in love.

Becky Walker, Covenant Class

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things came into being through him, and without him not one thing came into being. What has come into being in him was life, and the life was the light of all people. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it. …  And the Word became flesh and lived among us, and we have seen his glory, the glory as of a father’s only son, full of grace and truth. – John 1:1-5, 14

It felt like my world was turning upside down.  In the words of children’s author Judith Viorst, “It was a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day.”  And yet, that night, I found myself standing with my young daughter in front of a majestic and breath-taking live nativity.  We stepped inside the stable and onto the hay, standing close enough to touch the beatific face of baby Jesus, chatting with a smiling mother Mary and beaming father Joseph, listening to an angel in white play carols on a flute.  Tears rolled down my face as the tension of my day began to subside. I watched the wonder in my daughter’s eyes and felt a tiny bit of the reality of God becoming one of us and living amongst us.  As we walked away, I overheard a tired and exasperated Mary tell Joseph, “Oh, no, here comes my Mom.”  I giggled as the weightiness of my ‘a-ha’ moment was gone, but for me the meaning of the moment increased.  Suddenly, this nativity scene became even more ‘real’ as I truly understood Mary and Joseph – the perfect characters we know and love from the well-worn nativity story – to be human, to be real people.  They were people with families and stress, heart-broken and tired, whose world sometimes felt like it was turning upside down.  And Jesus became one of these real people, one of us and lived among us.

As we journey through stressful days this Advent, may we remember Jesus as Emmanuel, God with us.

Amanda von Herrmann

To Worship the Christ child, sharing gifts and love with the children of Christ

And do not forget to do good and to share with others, for with such sacrifices God is pleased. – Hebrews 13:16

I can always tell that Christmas is close when I see large black garbage bags and bicycles lining the hallway at Bluff Park.  Today, Bluff Park and 5 other United Methodist churches will host 670 children and their parents at the Festival of Three Kings.  What a wonderful day of fun we will all have as we play games, paint faces, dress up as angels and have pictures made with Santa Claus.  While the children are having fun at the craft tables, their parents will pick up gifts selected for the children by the many sponsors from the churches.  Bluff Park members sponsored 110 children this year.

At the end of the day everyone will smile as they remember the happy faces of the children and their families.  Thank you for your support of the Festival of Three Kings.  Giving to others is one of the most meaningful parts of the Advent season.

Debi Whitcomb

Scripture: Luke 2:1-20

Family traditions. We all have them. Some we treasure, some we abhor, but we all have them.

Christmas Eve. What memories does that bring to mind?

Christmas Eve was one of our family traditions that I treasure. Each year my maternal grandmother would come spend the holiday with us. We would spend the day tending to the last minute preparations for the Christmas meal, wrapping presents and trying our best to stay out of trouble (more difficult for some).

Late afternoon meant getting ready to go to church for the Christmas Eve Candlelight service. We would then return home for family time which included reading the Christmas story from Luke and opening one gift of our choice from under the tree. I remember the scripture reading vividly. It was a rite of passage. I’m the last of five children. I had to wait my turn. I had to learn to read first (small technicality). But the year my mother told me it was my year, I was so excited. I practiced reading out loud. The anticipation was tangible. When the time came, I remember sitting proudly in the center of the room and reading with confidence and grinning from ear to ear.

And so it should be with Advent. Are we just going through the motions or do prepare ourselves in such a way that our anticipation is tangible? Are we more worried about what gift we give to each person on our list than preparing ourselves to celebrate the best gift we have ever been given? Do we get caught up in the hustle and bustle rather than looking for ways to share the joy of Christmas with others?

What can we do to become better prepared, to share the joy of Christmas with others? This Advent devotion is one way – taking time to study The Word and reflect on the birth of Christ. Sharing the joy can be as simple as smiling at every person we encounter or letting a car through in traffic. It doesn’t have to be a big production – it can be an everyday thing that brings joy to our hearts. Like a favorite family tradition.

Betsy Guy, Faith Class

Who do we belong to?

“But now, this is what the LORD says– he who created you, Jacob, he who formed you, Israel: “Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have summoned you by name; you are mine.” – Isaiah 43:1

When I reflect back on special Christmas times, one that always pops into my mind is the year Santa gave me a “Chatty Cathy” doll.  All I had asked for that year was a “Chatty Cathy” doll. When we got ready to open our presents from Santa on Christmas morning, I saw the usual books, clothes and candy but no doll.  A few minutes later, I heard someone call my name and say “here I am”.  When I went around behind the chair I found my beloved doll, calling my name and claiming me to be her little girl.  The excitement and joy of that moment have remained with me for many years and always remind me how the LORD has called my name and claimed me to be his child.  Just as “Chatty Cathy” and I spent many day revealing in each other’s companionship at tea time, bathtime and bedtime, the LORD seeks our companionship and reminds us that we are not alone.  He reminds us that he has claimed us, he has freed us from our sins and he has set us free.  Our LORD is the source of our peace and joy.

Thought for the Day
The LORD has claimed us and set us free to have a life of peace and joy.

Prayer
Dear Lord, thank you for calling our names and claiming us. During the Advent season may we have the hope and joy of a young child awaiting a special day and may we always remember who we belong to.

Tina Hardy, Faith Class

For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of self-discipline. –

2 Timothy 1:7

At church I scurried to finish my list of “to do” things and I heard a voice from the office say, here’s the lady that can help you – meaning me. Alright, I can add one more thing to my list, how can I help? I walked in the office and in a softer tone the secretary said “this man needs some food, can you put together some groceries from our pantry?” Sure, I would be glad to.  So I introduced myself and assured him he had come to the right place.

As we exchanged idle chit chat, I asked him for a little information. We got the paperwork filled out and I offered some words of encouragement as we headed to the door where his 2 bags of groceries were sitting for him to gather up and be on his way. All along there was a voice inside my head and a nudging in my heart that was telling me to pray with this man to reassure him that he was not alone, there is hope, and Christ will always be with him.

Conversing in my head with God I was saying I can’t pray, what would I say, and I couldn’t muster up the courage to pray with this man. God gave me the opportunity and I passed. Someone else might have accepted and prayed with that man but my opportunity walked out the door.

Julie Adams, Covenant Class

Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. – Philippians 4:6-7

As a mother of 3 children, I often find myself worrying about the future. What would happen if Josh or I were to get sick? What would happen if we lose our jobs? Even worse, what if one of our children was to get sick?

I recently had to have several medical tests done to determine the cause of some symptoms I was having. The anxiety of what the tests would show pretty much consumed my thoughts and my life. I was unable to focus on everyday tasks due to my fear of the unknown. I couldn’t enjoy my family, friends, or any of the wonderful blessings in my life because of the fear and worry of something that was beyond my control. The stress and anxiety resulting from this fear had essentially paralyzed my life.

In the Bible, God assures us that he will give us peace in our hearts to get us through the times of worry, anxiety, and fear of the unknown. Philippians 4, verses 6-7, tells us to not be anxious, but to give our thanks and let our requests be known to God. When we do this, God’s peace, which surpasses all understanding, will guard our hearts and minds. You see, when we cast our fears and anxieties on God, we can have peace in our hearts and minds that the creator of the universe and all of its glory will carry our burdens for us and give us a peace that is immeasurable.

Lori Beasley, Footsteps Class

If we live life in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit. Galatians 5:25

Several years ago my wife and I had a lot of difficulty slowing our lives down enough to give the Holy Spirit a chance to work in our hearts. It seems we were too busy from dawn to dusk filling our lives with what we believed were essential tasks. I was especially guilty of not slowing down. Then a fortunate event occurred as we were attending a Life Leaders seminar. We had been going to these programs for over 20 years and always seemed to leave with a helpful “nugget.” Anyway, this seminar was about having an “accountability partner”-someone who loved you enough to tell you what you needed to hear.

That began a habit that has endured for the past 6 years. At the start of each year I set goals for each of the seven areas of life: Spiritual, Professional, Personal, Social, Physical, Financial, and Philanthropic. In July and December she would grade me (“A” through “F”) on how well I was doing in balancing those areas. For a while I was quite “out of round.” Then, with her encouragement and a lot more attention to “walking in the spirit” my life began to take on a sense of contentment. There were and are still bumps in the road but, through prayer and an angel wife my capacity to let Christ set priorities became a way of living. A great example of this is joy and excitement in my heart that has come from preparing for the Christmas on the Bluff “Believe” program on December 8th balanced lifestyle and ask the Holy Spirit to walk in our hearts as we begin each day. We are seeking to live a well-balanced lifestyle and ask the Holy Spirit to walk in our hearts as we begin each day.

Stretch Dunn, Seekers Class